How To Save A Life
by EmmyEeveeZorua
Summary: SPOILERS FOR AZRAN LEGACIES Bronev is assigned to pick out a child to train for Targent, a task he'd rather not have. But despite that, he manages to open the heart of one of the children, a little girl who is emotionally scarred, and changes her life for the better. This is the their story, from the good to the bad, and from work to play.
1. Hello, Who Are You?

Bronev walked up the cobblestone path and on to the porch of the Children's Home he was due to enter. He didn't truly want a child, but he had eagerly snatched up the task before the full details had been revealed. That damn executive had known perfectly well Bronev was attempting to move up the ranks in the agency, and she also known that he did not want a child after... No, he didn't want to think about Lacey. It was too nerve-wracking, even though it had been 5 years. Or was it 10? He didn't know; time had passed quickly while in the agency.

Bronev raised his clenched fist, about to knock on the emerald green door, but stopped. _You can leave now,_ his subconscious said._ You don't have to do this. _Unfortunately, he had to. If he went back to headquarters alone, everyone would know that the stoic Bronev was a coward. And because he had to pick up a child, the new agent that was so desperately needed! With that thought in mind, he raised his fist again, and before he could back out, he knocked on the door. Almost instantly, it opened up to reveal a young woman wearing a bright pink apron, a volunteer for collage credit most likely.

"Hello. Who are you?", she asked, looking at him as though he were a key found in a house that had no need for it. Bronev looked at her. Oh, dear. He hadn't thought about this... But luckily for him, a voice called out "Zelda? What are you doing?" The owner of the voice appeared at the doorway, an woman in her fifties with her graying hair tied up in a bun, wearing an apron as well, a baby blue one. It was clear by the way she held herself that she was the mistress of the place. It might of been this that caused Bronev to thrust the papers he had brought in front of him. The startled headmistress took them gingerly from his hand, and looked over them. "Oh, so you're Mr. Bronev?" she asked. The man nodded, then spoke. "Yes, I am Bronev." "Well, don't just stand there. Come inside!"

Bronev followed the woman through the door, looking around the front. It was a dreary sort of place, with yellow curtains and cheap looking furniture, certainly unlike the Targent front room, which had furniture rivaling the splendor of Buckingham Palace. Then he noticed the crayon drawings plastered to the walls, some with pictures of cats, and some others with pictures of a smiling objects, with none of the drawings being voluptuous. "You must be nervous! It would explain why you haven't said a word! I'm Carrie Wagner, the manager of the place." chattered Carrie, guiding him through a door. "I'm certain you're eager to meet the children. Right this way." They were soon at the doorway to a large room packed head to toe with children and beds.

The room went still, all eyes on the strange man. Only one child was brave enough to walk up. "Who are you?" piped a small girl who jet black pigtails. "I'm Lilly. Are you here to take one of my friends?" "Umm..." Bronev stammered. "Yes, Lilly. This man is looking for somebody to take care of. Why don't you go back and play?" suggested Mrs. Wagner. Lilly obeyed, and soon all of the children were back to their noisy, cheery selves. Well, almost all of them. Bronev noticed one girl who sitting on a bed in the back of the room alone, cowering into the yellow counterpane. In fact, she had been the only child who hadn't looked up when he entered the room. "Who's that?" he asked, pointing towards the small child, who could only be about three or four years old. Following his gaze, Mrs. Wagner stiffened. "Sir, I should warn you about Emmeline. She's a... _special _case. We don't know much about her, except for what close friends told the police about the Altavas." "The police?" Bronev questioned, confused as to why Scotland Yard was called in.

"Yes, the police. You see, her parents were murdered, and poor Emmeline was there when it happened. The police found her sitting in her parent's blood, covered in spiders, screaming for them. They think she witnessed the crime, as she was the only person left alive, possibly because the murder didn't see her, or had her preoccupied by breaking the spider tank near her. Her father studied them." Bronev looked at her, stunned, and she hastily plunged on. "She doesn't remember it, thank God, she was only three, but it still has had some effect on her. She won't eat and if she does it's only a small meal, she wets the bed, she won't play with the other children, and rarely speaks; only to tell prospective parents that she knows they aren't her parents, and not to lie to her, or to scream like a banshee if a spider is within 3 metres of her. That left her scared to death of them." Mrs. Wagner sighed, dropping her hands as though she was ready to give up. "We're not sure what to do with her, really. Should we keep her here, and hope she opens up? Or should I send her to one of those nut-houses? The local doctor thinks so, he says she's turning spastic. Horrid man, I kicked him out the door when he said that. She might be emotionally scarred, but she's not spastic, she wouldn't last a day in the nut-house." It was obvious that the fate of Emmeline Altava greatly distressed Carrie Wagner.

"Do you mind if I tried to talk to her?" Bronev asked. He was curious to see this child, and attempt to coax her out of her hellish-like world. "If you insist," sighed Mrs. Wagner. "Zelda! Can you get Emmeline?" "Sure thing, Mrs. W!" said Zelda cheerily, wading her way through the mass of children. Zelda reached Emmeline in a matter of seconds, and when she tapped the Emmeline on the shoulder, the girl turned around and held out her twig-like arms to her. "Zelda's the only person Emmeline will let touch her," explained Mrs. Wagner. "I think it's because Zelda somewhat resembles Anzu Altava to her, despite not being or looking remotely Japanese. It might be their voices." When she finished speaking, Zelda appeared next to them, giving Emmeline a piggyback ride. "Here we are, Mrs. Wagner!" said Zelda cheerily, bouncing Emmeline on her back. "Good, now let's go to my office" said Mrs. Wagner, leading them down a hallway and going into a room with numerous puffy chairs.

"Sit down, Mr. Bronev." said Mrs. Wagner, pointing to a seat with purple cushions. "And Zelda, please put Emmeline in the yellow chair and leave. It might be better if you did. And don't forget to close the door behind you". After Zelda made her departure, Emmeline let out a small cry and buried herself into the chair, trying to avoid the looks cast at her. Bronev felt a surge of pity grasp him, and began to have second thoughts about this. What if he couldn't help Emmeline? What if she was doomed to live in a nut house for the remainder of her life, however long that was? No, he couldn't think those thoughts. Targent was counting on him, Emmeline was counting on him! He got up from his chair, walked to Emmeline, and knelt down so he was equal to her eye level. The girl quavered, peeking at him from between her fingers, and whimpered, sounding like an injured kitten. It was probably best to talk to her at once.

"Emmeline, I'm..." Bronev beagan, but he was interrupted by Emmeline screams. "NO!NO! NO! YOU'RE NOT MY PAPA!" she screamed, shaking, and covering her ears with her hands. "YOU'RE NOT PAPA! STOP FIBBING TO ME! TELL ME WHO YOU YOU REALLY ARE!" Mrs. Wagner attempted to put a positive spin on the unfortunate beginning. "Well, that's the most she's ever said at once." Bronev frowned. It was clear she didn't trust anyone, espcially people who said they were her parents, and it was going to take some thinking to get past that particular barrier. He was pondering it over when the solution hit him. It was so simple, how could no one else have though of it?

"Emmeline, you're right", Bronev said calmly. "I'm not your "Papa". I'm your Uncle." Almost immediately Emmeline's screams halted, and she uncovered her ears. "You're my... Uncle?" she said horsely and uncertainly, looking at him with her ebony coloured eyes. It was hard to believe this child had been screaming loud enough to raise the dead merely moments before. "Yes Emmeline, I'm your Uncle Bronev. I'm here to take you home with me." Emmeline looked at him, and tears began to well up in her small eyes. "You won't leave me like Mummy and Papa did, will you?" Bronev held out his arms to attempt to give her a hug, and she flew into his arms, sobbing as the emotional wall she had built around herself collapsed to rubble. "No Emmeline, I won't leave you. Not ever." Bronev said, his voice wavering.

**AN: Good god, this was not meant to be this long or have a murder in it! Second Chapter 2 is coming soon! And I own NOTHING!**


	2. The Rainy Truth

**An: Thanks to all who reviewed!**

**Guest: I like the idea of her being adopted too. It does make things easier. The reason she is called "Emily" instead of "Emmy" is so Bronev can give her a pet name.**

**The Mocking J: I'm glad that there are people who think Emmy is adopted, too. And I think you're right, he wouldn't just simply get married after losing his entire family. **

**Lumos314: Thank you for the advice! Don't worry, it made sense to me, and I probably should of done something about the sentence with Mrs. Wagner. **

**Larkwings: I do agree with you on the rushed last paragraph, and I plan on expanding on it this chapter. **

**Gail: :D**

**I'm thinking of making this a bunch of chapters about Emmy's life with Bronev and Targent. What do you think? Should I do it? **

* * *

Bronev was feeling particularly cheerful as he walked up the cobblestone path to the Children's Home, the same one he had grudgingly walked up 7 months prior. Walking onto the porch, he knocked on the door like he had on his first visit there. The door flew open, revealing Zelda, holding her fat gray-green cat, Link, in one hand and a small brown suitcase in the other. "Hello, Mr. B," said Zelda, smiling as she stepped aside. "You ready to adopt Emmeline? C'mon in." Bronev obliged, returning Zelda's grin. "How's Emmeline?" asked Bronev, concerned for the young girl and her happiness. "She's fine", called Mrs. Wagner, rushing in from one of the many rooms that was connected to the front room of the house. "She's napping now, so you'll have to be quiet."

"Oh," Bronev frowned. He had been hoping to speak with Emmeline about him adopting her, as he had never gotten around to thoroughly explaining it to her earlier due to her desire to test him seemingly at every possible opportunity. It had turned out that her tears had not been a willingness to open up to him at all, but relief that there was somebody who loved her, something she had thought nonexistent. But Emmeline had been terrified that Bronev would forsake her, despite his reassurances, prompting her to test him at whenever she felt he was going to leave her, so she could see if he would still love her no matter what she did. Her antics included, but weren't limited to: spilling her juice on the carpet, breaking a couple vases, stepping on Link's tail (Zelda and Bronev had been furious. Link, on the other hand, couldn't have cared less and went back to Emmeline for more petting), eating all of the sweets and vomiting on the couch, refusing to take off her muddy boots and mackintosh, and breaking framed photographs. Fortunately for Emmeline, Mrs. Wagner had seen her destructive pranks as her opening up in an odd sort of way, so she wasn't harshly punished. Mrs. Wagner had also noted that Emmeline had begun to speak more in the second month, eat more in the third month, and the bed-wetting gradually lessened in the fifth month, all of which she connected with Bronev's daily visits and his ability to connect to Emmeline.

Bronev found himself smiling when he thought of his 'niece', even if he was thinking of her misbehavior. But even though Emmeline had started to trust him utterly after the sixth month (Her destructive behavior had ceased around this time), he was still worried about her adjusting to living with him. After all, her parents had just disappeared from her life altogether, something she had had trouble coping with, and it had showed. So how would she react to being moved to a new place with new people? Would she shut down again? Would all of his hard work opening her heart go to waste? No, no. He couldn't think those thoughts. Bronev wasn't a superstitious man, but it still didn't hurt to cautious.

"Bronev? Bronev? Bronev!" Zelda's voice yanked him out of his thoughts. He turned to her irritated at first, but the irritation faded once he saw he joyful look on her face. "Emmeline just woke up, and you were the first person she asked for." Eager to see his 'niece', Bronev followed Zelda to the nursery, were he saw Emmeline sitting on her bed's yellow counterpane in the dimmed room. "I'll leave you two alone," said Zelda, closing the door behind her, plunging the room into semi-darkness. Bronev walked over to Emmeline's bed and sat down next to her. Emmeline crawled into his lap the instant he sat down, snuggling up next to him. "Emmeline," Bronev said, smiling at the innocent little girl in his lap. "Today you're going to come live with me." "I am?" Emmeline muttered sleepily. "Yes, today I'm adopting you." "What's adoption?" asked Emmeline, sounding more awake, as though the prospect of adoption had frightened her.

"Adoption is when you come to live with me, and I take care of you until you're grown-up." Bronev said, stroking her hair as he talked. "It's nothing bad, not like a shot, and it means that you and I never have to be separated anymore. Wherever you go, I go, and wherever you go, I'll go too." Emmeline pondered over this for a few moments before answering. "Ok. Can you adopt me now, please?" "Are you sure, Emmeline?" he asked, even though he was certain that he knew what the answer would be. "Yes," Emmeline said in the firmest voice she could muster. "I want to come live with you." "Alright then, I'll go adopt you then." He smiled, and took Emmeline's small hand, guiding her out of the darkness of the nursery.

* * *

About two and a half hours later, after all of the papers had been signed and all of the goodbyes had been said, Bronev and Emmeline were on a train, heading home to Bath. The train ride started out pleasant enough, and the two enjoyed wandering the train together, visiting the numerous cars and talking to the staff, with their miniature exodus ending in the plush dining car. Both adult and child were just about to order their drinks when a man with an important, venomous air sat down across from them, much to the surprise of Bronev, and Emmeline. "I'll take a peppermint martini," the strange man drawled, as though he did this sort of thing everyday. "I'll take a cup of Earl Grey," Bronev said, eying at the man suspiciously, wondering what the _hell_ he was doing there. "I'll have amazake," said Emmeline, in a quiet voice. "With some extra ginger, please." The waitress scribbled the orders down on her notepad, and asked, "Is that all?" "Of course it is," growled the man, glaring at her with his venom-green eyes. "Do we _look_ ready to order to you?" Surprised at the man's rudeness, the waitress backed away, and all but fled to the kitchen.

Taking no notice of the fleeing waitress, the man turned to Bronev. "So I'd assume that the mission was a success, considering the fact that you have the girl, but then I risk looking like an ass. So enlighten me, Bronev. Was the assignment a success?" "Yes," Bronev said, scowling. "It was a success, Commander." "Good. I expect no less from one of Targent's finest, an agent I handpicked my myself." He turned towards Emmeline. "So, little lady, how do you like my best agent?" Emmeline shifted uncomfortably. "My Uncle? He's fine. I like him a lot." "You do? That's good. What's he like?" The Commander said, looking at Bronev through the corner of eyes. "He's nice to me," whimpered Emmeline. "He takes care of me." "He does now, does he?" The Commander smiled, obviously amused. He opened his mouth to say more, but the waitress come back. "Here are your drinks," she said, as perky as she could with the Commander giving her a venomous look. She set them down, and fled once again.

"Ahem" said the Commander, obviously enraged at being interrupted. "So Emmeline, how does your 'Uncle' take care of you. What does he do?" "I don't know," Emmeline whimpered, gripping Bronev's arm as though it was a lifeline. "He just adopted me." The Commander drained his martini, and replied in a condescending manner. "He did? How sweet. Anyway, I'd love to stay and chat, but I have to go. Meeting with another agent." He stood up as the train shifted to a stop. "Bronev, thank you for allowing me to speak with you. It was quite peasant. And thank you for letting me speak with the little miss. I found her quite... _Interesting_." He grinned wickedly, and stepped out of the car.

"Uncle," Emmeline whimpered. "Who was that man?" "He was my boss", replied Bronev, frowning as he realized something. "He seemed to enjoy scaring you. Are you alright, Emmeline?" "I'm fine," she replied, loosening her grip on Bronev's arm. "But I think I've seen him before. I just don't remember where." Bronev patted her on the back. "Don't worry then. It probably wasn't important."

* * *

The Commander briskly walked down the filthy street, avoiding detection in the equally frugal village (Compared to Targent headquarters, anyway). He had finished meeting with the agent, codenamed "Christie", and was taking care of some... _personal _business. If one called visiting a cemetery personal business, of course. It wasn't any of his family, as his parents were buried in Wales, and his sister was safe in Godd City, but the people he was visiting were more like business associates, for lack of a better term. The Commander took a couple of turns, and walked through the cemetery gate, walking slowly until he got to two certain graves.

Stopping in front of them, registering the filth of the tombstones. Filthy, just like the rest of the village, despite having been buried for just one year. Commander placed a bouquet of apricot-coloured flowers on the grave belonging to the mother, and an Azran artefact on the grave belonging to the father. Anzu and Evan. Even in death, the Altavas were always together in some form, even though they were missing one. They had been together the first time he'd met them, along with the last time. He remembered it all so well...

_It had been raining softly the first time he had met the strange family. He had been walking around this very village, looking for an address Christie had given him. She had said that at that address lived a family of three and that one of them seemed to have extraordinary control over Azran artifacts and other Azran ruins. She had seen them herself, she claimed. That being said, it meant that one member of the Altava family could control half of the village, as it was built over Azran ruins. He had spent an hour in the drizzling rain before he found the Altava household. He had gratefully accepted Evan's invitation into the house, only realizing it was his destination when he had asked Evan where the address was. Evan had grinned and ran his fingers through his unruly chocolate-coloured hair, telling him that this was the address he needed to find, and how he could be of service._

_He had told Evan of his reason, and had watched the man's jovial smile fade with an inner joy, happy at his discomfort, hopeful it would help achieve his goal. He had hoped wrong. Evan had called in his wife, and had asked her about what had been asked of him. Anzu had told him something in her native tongue, Japanese, he had thought. Anzu had stormed out of the room, knocking over an umbrella stand. A few minutes later Anzu returned, this time carrying a small girl with her ebony eyes and her father's hair, although the girl' hair was much neater. Anzu had told him, in English, that this was their daughter, Emmeline, the person he had wanted, and then asked what the _**_hell_**_ he wanted with her child. He had answered calmly, and had told the Altavas about Targent and their objective. This had been a fatal mistake, as the parents had reacted horribly. Anzu had shoved Emmeline into her father's arms, and had chased Commander out of the house and back into the drizzling rain..._

The Commander frowned. He hated to think of his "before" experience with the Altavas; he preferred to think of the "after" experience instead.

_His second visit to the Altavas had been much more... _**_Gratifying_**_. He had come prepared this time, with a loaded pistol and a stiletto knife. He had knocked on the door, with a glint in his eye and a hatred in his heart. Evan had answered the door, and had given a start when he saw who it was. "What the hell are you doing here?" he had demanded. "I already told you that you can't have Emmeline!" The Commander had only smiled. "I don't want your daughter; I want you all." Lifting his gun to chest level, he shot Evan Altava in the heart. Blood gushed from his shirt, drenching the floor, staining it red. The man staggered, looking at the Commander in shock and terror, sinking to the ground, ready to die. But not until he had yelled a final message. "Anzu!" he had yelled. Or tried to yell. It had come out as low groan. "Take Emmeline and get out of the house! Escape while you-" A gunshot rang through the still air. Evan stopped living, his body hitting the wood floor with a deadened thud. Footsteps sounded from upsatirs. Anzu and Emmeline. He had rushed up the stairs and into the bedroom. Anzu was there, guarding Emmeline, who was in her crib "Why..." Anzu wailed, tears streaming down her face. "Why are you doing this?" _

_He didn't answer; he only raised the gun. "No!" screamed Anzu, throwing her thin body at him. They never made contact. The force of the gunshot blew Anzu back, with her limp corpse hitting the crib, causing more blood to splatter. He walked forward, stepping over Anzu's corpse in order to get to the crib. A small girl peered up at him, not realizing the danger she was in, and that her mother was dead in front of her. He dropped the gun, and reached for the crib, tipping it over, spilling the small girl to the ground. He grabbed he roughly, and carried her to her father's study. He looked around, searching for the perfect weapon, ignoring the screaming child in his arms. He spotted it on the desk, a spider tank. Picking it up, he took both the tank and Emmeline into the bedroom, where Anzu's corpse was growing cold. He threw Emmeline to the ground, causing her to cry out in pain. What he did next was unforgivable, by ethic standards. He threw the tank at the child, causing it to shatter over her, and covering her in glass shards and spiders. He left after this, relishing in hearing the girl's screams._

The Commander smiled. The memory of the Altava's deaths still brought joy to his heart. But he hadn't heard that the daughter had survived. This could bring complications to his plan. If the girl remembered... No, that couldn't happen. Emmeline had been too young... He frowned, staring at the Altava's graves. The girl couldn't remember. He would make certain she didn't remember.

* * *

**An: Thank you all for reading.**


	3. Birthday Girl

**An: Thanks to everyone who reviewed!**

**Larkwings: Thank you! I am overjoyed that you would like this to continue. **

**Abitat Eco: He's the kind of person who feeds cyanide to kittens, kicks puppies, and treats his sister like the School treated Maximum Ride.**

**The Mocking J: I'm glad you hate the Commander (His sister hates him as well), and I'm happy you like Bronev more. **

**KeyBladeTopHatMaster: Don't worry about the confusion. Fanfiction can be odd, along with cell phones. **

**I'm happy that so many people wanted me to continue, and since I might need help coming up with ideas, would reviewers like to make requests, and if so, what?**

Date: April 6th

Time Skip: 2 weeks

Age: 5years old

Time: 8:00 a.m.

Emmeline Altava woke up to the smell of something sweet and lemony wafting through the open door of her bedroom. She sat up in her bed, wondering why her uncle was in the kitchen this early in the morning. Why was he cooking? Was it for work? Or was it for a holiday? If it was for a holiday, as that seemed most likely, then what holiday was it? It couldn't be Christmas or New Years, as those holidays had already passed. And she knew for a fact it wasn't Greenery Day, a holiday that Mummy and Papa had loved...

Emmeline frowned, hugging her knees to her chest, knowing that thinking of her parents wouldn't bring them back, wherever they were. She would have remained in her room, lost in a flashback of her parents, but the sweet smell of sugared lemons was growing stronger, overwhelming her small and empty stomach. She waited for a couple minutes, trying her best to endure the smell, while her stomach protested and growled like their golden retriever, Isabelle. But it was no use; a hungry little girl can't wait long for food! Starving, Emmeline went downstairs, narrowly tripping over the large grey t-shirt she was using as a nightgown on the last step. Regaining her balance, she walked into the kitchen and saw her uncle standing in front of the stove, wearing a large pair of oven mitts. "Uncle?" said Emmeline, staring at him, her ebony eyes the size of plates. "What are you doing?"

"I'm baking a cake", her Uncle answered matter of factly. "Why?" she asked, eyeing the oven suspiciously, not certain if he was teasing her. For some reason she couldn't understand, he liked to do that sometimes. "Emmeline," he said, staring at her as though she was joking with him. "I'm baking you a birthday cake; today's your birthday." Emmeline just stared at him in confusion. What was a birthday? She'd never heard of them, and Mummy and Papa had never said anything about them. Her confusion must of showed, as her Uncle spoke again. "A birthday is the celebration of the day you were born, and today, 5 years ago, you were born. So I decided to bake a cake for us to eat for breakfast so the two of us, along with Isabelle, could celebrate." He bent down on one knee and picked her up, and began to start tickling her in the belly. She giggled, and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I also got you a couple of gifts to open as well."

Emmeline sat in her Uncle's arms, feeling warm and content, when a sudden thought occurred to her. "Uncle, how do you know my birthday?" "It was on your papers when I adopted you," he responded, hugging her tightly. She returned the hug, the warm feeling returning. Her question had been answered, and she had complete faith in whatever her Uncle said. "So", he said, placing her down on the floor. "Would you like to open your presents after breakfast?" Emmeline nodded her head, curious as to what her Uncle had gotten her. But she honestly didn't mind whether she got gifts or not. No, what mattered to her was that she was with her Uncle and Isabelle.

The lemon cake had finished baking at around 9 o'clock, and Emmeline and her Uncle had eaten a fourth each by 10 o'clock. The other half had gone to Isabelle, who had eaten the rest while her humans had been upstairs getting dressed. Emmeline had found it very funny; her Uncle had not. After the incident with the cake, uncle and 'niece' went into the sitting room to open the presents. She sat on the small red couch, watching as her Uncle rummaged around in a large wooden box that held a variety of objects. He took out five packages of varying sizes from it, and placed them on the ground. He then lined them up in a row, and looked up to Emmeline. "So, Emmeline, I have a question to ask you", he said, smiling at her. "Which one do you want to open first?"

"That one," Emmeline said, pointing to the package to the left of her Uncle. She got down off the couch, and began to open the package. "Ooohh," she said, holding up a yellow kimono with pink borders. "This is pretty! I've always liked these." She carefully placed the garment back in the box, and began to open the next gift, a package of brightly coloured hair bows. Emmeline had grinned with delight at these as well; she had always loved the hair bows Mummy had worn and had longed for the day she could wear some too. The third gift had been a collection of short stories from various authors, and the fourth gift was a book of puzzles, both of which would entertain both Emmeline and her Uncle for many months to come. But it was the final gift that Emmeline loved the most. Inside the brown box lay a tan teddy bear wearing a red bow tie embroidered with the name 'Theodore' on it. "A teddy bear! I've always wanted one of them!" she squealed, hugging Theodore as hard as she could.

"Well, I'm glad you liked it", her Uncle said, smiling at her. He pulled her up onto his lap, and patted her on the head. "But I have one more gift to give you. A nickname."

"A nickname? What's that?" Emmeline asked. "Is it a type of name?" "Yes, it is. A nickname is a shortened version of someone's name." her explained. "What would mine be?" she asked. "I'd like one." "Let's see" he pondered. "Since your name is Emmeline, your nickname would be Emmy. Do like that?" She nodded. "You like it? Good! So from now on I can call you Emmy?" "Yes!" she said, nodding her head again. "So, Emmy," her Uncle said. "How do like your birthday so far?" Emmy grinned, and said, "I really like it a lot!"

**An: I need to thank my friends Music's Passion and Larrie the Light for helping me with ideas for this chapter. Thank you all for reading!**


	4. Nightmare

**An: Hello! **

**Hikari R: Ah! Please don't cry, I don't like it when people cry! It makes my heart hurt.**

**Lumos314: Oh, god... That is embarrassing. Thank you for telling me; I probably would of never noticed that typo. And thank you for the writing tips, they'll be handy in the future. :D**

**Abitat Eco & The Mocking J: You'll find out about Leppard's origin in a couple paragraphs!**

**KeybladeTopHatMaster: It's kind of the reverse for the teddy bear, actually. All requests are accepted! It will be the next chapter posted. **

**Larkwings: I'm glad you like the relationship between Emmy and Bronev. It makes me smile. And I like your your idea for a chapter, it should be the sixth one.**

**Guest: I hope you enjoy the story, and that the game doesn't ruin the story or vice versa.**

**:D**

**Ok, on to chapter 4!**

Age: 5

Date: April 15th

Time Skip: 9 days

Time: 1:00 a.m.

"Uncle? Uncle? Uncle?!" Emmy's shaky voice broke through Bronev's dream, which had been about Rachel, Hershel, Theodore and himself living as a family again. He sat up, disorientated by sleep and a bit annoyed at Emmy for waking him up. "Emmy, it's one in the-" He stopped his scolding once he saw her tear-streaked face. "What's the matter? Are you alright?" "I had a bad dream," the small girl sniffed, crawling into Bronev's lap. "What happened in it?" her uncle asked, stroking his niece's hair and holding the shaking girl tightly in his arms. He was well-learned in the practice of comforting small children suffering from nightmares, as he had done this many times with his own sons, and had figured out that the best way to have someone (mainly Theodore) feel better better about their nightmares was to have them tell him what had happened.

"A-a-a man with ye-ye-yellow hair came into th-th-the room Mu-Mu-Mummy and I were in, inside the ho-house I used to li-live in. She wa-was scared, and sh-she was trying to pro-pro-protect me from him, sho-shouting at him. He got ang-angry at her, and hu-hu-hurt her with a shiny th-th-thing, an-and she fe-fe-fell to the gro-ground. He th-th-then picked me up, and-and took me into Pa-Papa's study, and took hi-hi-his spider ta-ta-tank, and to-to-took me ba-back to th-the other room wi-with Mummy. He-He threw me-me on the flo-floor, and I crawled to Mummy, bu-bu-but she didn't move, and he-he-her hand was co-cold. The ma-man threw the spi-spi-spider tank at me, and the gla-gla-glass cut me, and the spi-spiders bit me and it _hurt_. I started screaming and th-th-the man left, lau-laughing. And a boy an-and girl appeared, with th-th-the boy having dark gr-gr-green eyes, and the girl ha-ha-having red hair. They were covered wi-wi-with black goop, and they asked for he-help looking for so-something. But I wa-wa-was scared, and they walked towards m-m-me, arms raised a-a-as to cho-choke me, and I wo-wo-woke up," Emmy sobbed into her uncle's pajamas, gripping the cloth and Theodore (whom she had brought with her) as though they were lifelines. Bronev rubbed her back for a few minutes, wondering how to soothe her, as it was obvious his tell-and-feel-better theory wouldn't help with this particular nightmare. He was certain Emmy was remembering her parent's grotesque murders, and that it would be a while before she went back to sleep. In the meantime, he had to calm his niece down. What had always calmed Leppard or Hershel down whenever they experienced terrifying nightmares?

"Emmy," Bronev said, an idea popping into his head. "Would you like to hear a story?" Emmy looked at him, her eyes still wet with tears. "A story?" she asked, still shivering despite being covered with a warm comforter. "About what?" "Well, what do you want the story to be about?" Bronev asked. His niece thought about what she wanted the story to be about for a minute, answering, "Can you tell me a story about Theodore?" She dangled the teddy bear a couple decimeters from his face for good measure. Laughing softly, her uncle gently pushed Leppard out of the way. "Alright, then. One story about Leppard coming up." He paused, wondering what would make a suitable tale. Then inspiration struck. "Ok, once upon a time, in a far away land, there lived two stuffed bears..."

"They were named Hershel and Theodore, and the two bears loved to go on adventures. They went on numerous different adventures, including one to the moon, but their absolute favorite adventure was the time they aided the Azran king Aurum, a man with golden hair, in finding his scepter, a beautiful staff of platinum and marble, much like a scepter of Greek legend, only much more powerful. You see, Emmy, the scepter had been stolen by a neighboring civilization, the Dimensione people, led by the princess Via, a girl who had beautiful platinum hair. And one day, Aurum had called the two bears to retrieve it. The two bears were rather nervous upon entering the king's golden court, with sages dressed in gossamer gowns and ivory crowns, possessing much more power and knowledge then the two bears put together. But their nervousness heightened when the king rose from his obsidian throne, wearing a scowl on his face. But the king, despite his unpleasant seeming demeanor, was kind to them, and told the two bears of his plight, about his missing scepter and who he thought stole it. He promised them fame and fortune if they completed the task, and the two bears agreed. But they didn't want the fame or fortune, just the thrill of adventure running through their fluff-filled bodies. The two bears left on their journey the next day, traveling across the 10 kilometer distance that separated the two powerful peoples. The journey took about 8 days, and would have been shorter had it not been for the powerful storms that raged across the land. Theodore and Hershel spent many hours fighting off the demons who tried to attack the two bears, and the rest of the hours fighting the storms. So when Hershel and Theodore finally made it to Via's own court, they were tired and hungry from their journey. The princess offrered them food and a place to sleep, which they accepted gratefully. The next day, the bears told Via of their task, and ask that she return the scepter. The princess refused, and stated that she would only return the scepter if the two bears located and brought a young Azran lady named Lusitania to her court. She stated that she had heard numerous things about this girl, and would like to speak to her. The bears agreed, and searched for Lusitania, finding her in the woods, speaking to the trees as though they were human or doll. They asked her to come to the court of the princess Via, a request she nervous about. But she agreed, and was escorted to the court. Once Via saw Lusitania, she gave the bears the scepter and told them to leave at once, as she had important business to take care of. Hershel and Theodore quickly returned to Azran territory, and to the court of Aurum. The king was overjoyed to have his staff back, and kept his promise, trying to reward the two bears. But the two were selfless, and refused to take the reward. They stated that they had already obtained their reward, which was the story of their adventure to share. Aurum reluctantly agreed, and stated that if war ever began, he would call on the two brothers"

Bronev looked down at his niece to see if she had enjoyed the story, actually a watered-down version of an ancient legend with his son's own teddies in it, and was pleased to see the story had had its intended effect. Emmy was fast asleep in his arms, and wasn't going to wake up anytime soon. He smiled at the small child, and was stroking her hair when he noticed something. Emmy was wearing her favorite (and only) necklace, a brown rope that had an ancient relic acting as a charm attached to it. This wasn't unusual, as he had seen her wearing it many times before (but he never thought to ask about it), but he was concerned that she didn't take it off before falling asleep. He gently removed the necklace from her neck, and examined it closely in his palm. It was a small stone, with Azran glyphs decorating both front and back, similar to artifacts he had seen several years earlier with Rachel. Bronev gently set the necklace down on his nightstand, and then tried to go back to sleep, but he was lost in thought, thinking of one of the best days of his life, and what followed.

_It had been a warm, sunny day when Rachel, Hershel, and himself had gone to some nearby Azran ruins. They had all been having a grand time, with Hershel examining the ancient ruins and relics within the ruins while he and Rachel sat on the picnic blanket they had brought along with them, laughing merrily at the antics of their son. "I love you, you know," he had told Rachel, giving her a peck on the check. She had smiled and kissed him in return. "Bronev, I have to tell you something." "What is it, sweetheart?" he had asked, smiling at her. "I'm pregnant." she had said in the firmest tone she could muster. He had looked at her in shock. "You're what?" he had stuttered. "For how long?" he had demanded. "I'm two months along, and I'm going to name him Theodore", she had said, patting her belly. "I've already started to make the baby's teddy bear." It was a tradition in Rachel's family to make a personal teddy bear for each and every child born, something both had enjoyed doing before Hershel was born. The boy had loved his bear, and had slept with it every night. Hershel had taken the news that he would be getting a little brother very well, his only complaint being that he would not let the baby touch his teddy bear. Once Theodore had been born, it was discovered that he adored his own little bear, always having it in his arms. In fact, he had had it in his arms when the worst day of the family's lives occurred._

_The day he and Rachel had been abducted by Targent had started out normal enough. Hershel had been reading a book about the Azran Legacies, and Theodore had been sitting in his mother's lap, asking her to repair the bow-tie that had fallen off his teddy, while he had been in his study, inspecting the multitude of artifacts lining the study walls. The only thing that had hinted at any abnormality was Cookie's excessive and noisy barking, with the former being normal for the peppy dog. Then all had gone silent much too quickly. Concerned, he had gone into the living room with the rest of his family, wondering what the hell was going on. As soon as he arrived in the room, the front door had flown open with an unearthly bang. Uniformed men had stormed in through the door, knocking over Rachel's favorite artifact, breaking it into shards. "Hey!" he had shouted, throwing his arms in front of his sons and wife. "What the hell do you want?" "Bronev, you know exactly what we want," said the man tugging at his arm. "Now come on." He had yanked both husband and wife out of the door, away from their children..._

Bronev slipped his hand underneath Emmy's spindly arms, removing the stuffed teddy bear from underneath. He ran his thumb over the teddy bear's black button eyes, stroked its polka-dot stomach, and stared at the golden stitching on the bear's red bow- tie spelling out his youngest son's name, as to be able to tell the teddies apart. He felt the tears forming in his eyes as he remembered the shock Rachel had been in, holding that bear in her arms, her eyes glazed over. He remembered how that teddy had been their only reminder if their children, and how Rachel had always carried it with her without fail, through rain or shine, right down to the day she died. He remembered how in the shock of grief, he had packed the bear into a box with Rachel's things and put it in the attic, only for him to rediscover it years later. The shock at finding his only link to his family has caused at torrent of tears and he had sobbed his heart out, releasing several years of grief, his tears falling onto the teddy's face, like they were now. He wiped his tears away from his face; he had to stay strong for his niece, as he was all she had left in this world.

Gently tucking Theodore back into Emmy's grasp, he tried to lay down as best he could with a girl in his arms and a dog on his feet. Tired as could be, Bronev closed his eyes, wanting more than anything to go to sleep at that moment. Maybe he would dream of Rachel. _"Yes. Sweet dreams, happy dreams." _a disembodied voice seemed to whisper. _"Safe dreams." _And with thoughts of his wonderful family on his mind, Bronev fell asleep.

If he had looked over at the necklace before falling asleep, he would of seen it glow with a reddish-green light, the air whispering around it.

**An: I just found out that Emmy's full name is Emmeline (sounds a heck lot like Emily in the cutscene. Bronev needs to go to speech!), and today, and I've been arguing with myself since 6 this morning about whether I should go back in change it in previous chapters, or just write a chapter explaining the change, such as the police goofed up. The former won, thanks to some help from Music's Passion and the fact that I'm a total accuracy freak when it comes to writing things, so I've already gone and done that, because this wouldn't quit bugging me. That aside, I'm on winter break! Lots of updates! Yeah!**


End file.
